


Pick Up and Keep Moving

by Immicolia



Series: Past Meeting AU [4]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-05
Updated: 2018-07-05
Packaged: 2019-06-01 03:20:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15133952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Immicolia/pseuds/Immicolia
Summary: The first time Shoichi runs into Zaizen after Hanoi falls is awkward.The next few times are surreal.The eighth time he's a wreck.





	Pick Up and Keep Moving

The first time he runs into Zaizen at Ace after Hanoi falls is strange. They're not quite at odds anymore (they have no reason to be, everything is over), hell Shoichi had tried his damnedest to save Zaizen's life. At the same time he's painfully aware that he's for all intents and purposes a criminal and Zaizen is someone who at the very least should be reporting him.

"There's talk of me getting my old job back," Zaizen says once Shoichi sits next to him, almost as if it's in response to his troubled thoughts, and Shoichi can feel the hair on the back of his neck start to prickle. An intense fight or flight reaction because Zaizen knows too much and is dangerous enough right where he is. Zaizen knowing what he does and being back in his old position....

It's obvious the other man is waiting for a response and eventually Shoichi chokes out a faint, "oh?"

"I'm still not going to use you to try and find Playmaker. I owe both of you that much. Technically, once I get my position back, I'm supposed to continue looking for the Ignis. But I won't come after Playmaker unless my hand is forced."

"I'll give you one piece of information," Shoichi begins carefully, his eyes fixed on the glass in front of him. "Playmaker released the Ignis after the Tower of Hanoi fell. Neither of us knows where he is. If that's all you're after we can't help you." _We wouldn't, either_ , he thinks, although it's best not to bring up that particular fact.

"Fair enough," Zaizen replies, and the pair of them drink in silence until Zaizen decides to leave.

 

The next few times they run into each other they wind up making small talk and it all feels incredibly surreal. Ace becomes a strange sort of neutral ground and within those walls, as they sit side by side at the bar, Zaizen complains about work, ("They're running me absolutely ragged trying to push out the new Link Vrains as quickly as possible. I don't know how I haven't quit, I must be a masochist.") and talks about his sister, ("I'm proud of her, you know. Terrified too, but I guess I can't shelter her forever.") and gently prods at Shoichi, asking idly about his day.

Inexplicably, Shoichi finds himself responding. He certainly doesn't consider Zaizen a friend by any stretch of the imagination (that will never happen) but he can't remember the last time he's been able to sit and have an adult conversation about inconsequential bullshit. So he tells the occasional anecdote and gripes about annoying customers.

And once or twice, if he's had just enough to drink, he finds himself talking about Jin.

"He's been getting better. It's slow but... it's really starting to sink in that it's all finally over."

For the most part Zaizen is silent during those rare, fragile, moments when his shell cracks open. Once, the first time, he'd said "I'm happy to hear that," and Shoichi had immediately scowled and clammed up. The bitter anger that has become so familiar to him over the years clinging in the back of his throat to the point where it was near impossible to breathe.

It's not that he doesn't believe Zaizen is being genuine about this. Given how much the man fusses and worries about his own sibling he probably sympathizes completely. But the last thing Shoichi wants is sympathy, especially from Zaizen.

And taking the hint from that first time, Zaizen stops saying a word whenever Shoichi is buzzed enough to bring the topic of Jin up.

 

The eighth time they bump into each other at Ace, Shoichi is a wreck. His every emotion a screaming raw nerve and he knows shouldn't be wasting time in a bar. He should be in the truck, in front of that bank of screens, trying to track down those bastards who stole Jin from him but at the same time he can recognize when he needs a break. Constant work leads to missing the obvious and as much as it kills him the best thing he can do right now is take a moment to breathe, to calm down, to center himself.

Except fuck everything because Zaizen is sitting _right there_ , chatting pleasantly with Aya, and Shoichi wants nothing more than to choke the life out of him.

He should turn on his heel and walk right back out the door, or at the very least find a secluded corner to sit in while he acts like Zaizen doesn't exist. Instead he stalks straight towards the man and slides into the seat next to him without any sort of conscious thought. Hissing, "Bounty hunters, Zaizen?" the moment he sits down, flashing a quick smile at Aya as she goes about setting his usual in front of him. "Really?"

Zaizen sighs, carefully not looking in Shoichi's direction and his own voice is pitched just as low as he replies, "What do you want me to say?"

"An explanation would be nice. Playmaker is pretty much the darling of Link Vrains right now for taking down Hanoi and this is the thanks he gets?"

"It's out of my hands."

"I'm pretty sure you're the guy signing those merc's paycheques so forgive me if I have a hard time believing--"

"The executives want Playmaker caught," Zaizen cuts him off. "Or more, they want the Ignis and Cyberse and they view him as a good way to get at it. And like I've told you before: I don't have the luxury of saying 'no' to them. But don't get me wrong, I'm not about to forget how much I personally owe." He pauses to take a sip of his drink and shoots the barest of glances towards Shoichi, meeting his eyes. "I just need to make it look good. I'm sure Playmaker can handle it."

"So you're going to play both sides?"

"I have to. If I fully turn on SOL it's going to end badly for me. I know things that they would prefer nobody knows. So does Playmaker, which next to retrieving the Ignis is the biggest reason they're after him. You're just lucky they don't know you exist. You're welcome, by the way." He sweeps a hand through his hair, agitated. "Even meeting like this could be dangerous for both of us."

"Well, maybe you should find a different place to drink then."

"In all fairness, I was here first." A heavy sigh slips past Zaizen's lips. "And I came here to unwind. Can we forget the antagonism for ten minutes and talk about something else? Other than the Playmaker incident how was your day?"

Shoichi's vision goes dark for a moment and there's a rush of adrenaline that has him wanting to jump up and shake Zaizen, screaming "how do you think?" at him.

Except that question was so idle and innocently curious that it's impossible to believe that Zaizen is aware of what happened and is fishing for details. It's not that Shoichi thinks it's impossible for him to be that callous but when it comes to Jin, Zaizen has been nothing but sympathetic. Almost annoyingly so.

"You don't know yet." Even though it's obvious he still can't quite believe it. Can't believe that Zaizen doesn't spy on him to some extent.

"Know what? What happened?"

"Jin. Something-- something stole him." His throat is tight as he tries, once again, to make sense of everything he saw, everything that happened, and for one sideways moment he's thirteen again. Thirteen and sitting in this very same spot on the verge of breaking down. His hand clenched so tightly around the glass he's holding that his knuckles start to ache and he's vaguely aware of Zaizen carefully extracting it from his grip.

"What do you mean, stole?"

"His mind. Or-- or something like that. We were talking and everything was fine -- as fine as it could be anyway. I- I was talking about bringing him _home_ , and then--" He gives his head a sharp shake, sucking in a few deep breaths to steady himself before he continues. Unable to stop the words now that they're coming, even if he is spilling everything to one of the worst possible people on the planet. "I can't think about it. I just need to find out what happened and then we can fix it. I almost had him back, I'm not losing him again."

"Is that why Playmaker came back to Link Vrains? I thought his resurfacing was strange after he'd been missing for months."

Shoichi nods. "He almost had them. Maybe if _someone_ hadn't put a bounty on his head..." His voice trails off accusingly and he fixes a glare on Zaizen who simply shakes his head.

"Judging by how quickly Playmaker dealt with it, I doubt the bounty made all that much of a difference."

"But we'll never know, will we?"

Zaizen sighs, his fingers drumming against the bartop for a moment and it's obvious that he's grasping for something to say. Ultimately calling out, "Aya-san. Get him another. I'm buying."

"I can't afford to get drunk right now, Zaizen," Shoichi snaps, immediately waving Aya off. "And I'm not talking financially either. I can't just sit here and wallow. Not while Jin's--"

"I'll look into it. I don't have unlimited access but I could probably--"

"It's not your fucking place to!" His fist slams against the bartop hard enough for the glasses in front of them to jump and almost immediately he regrets it as Aya aims a stern frown in his direction. "Why do you do shit like this? Keep injecting yourself into everybody's problems like it's somehow your business?"

For a moment Zaizen's expression is blank. His body gone completely still as if he's mentally examining something. Then he gives his head a small shake, a rueful smile just barely touching his lips. "I couldn't tell you. I've just had to fix everything for so long. It's all I know how to do."

"Well you don't have to."

"I've told you before that I'm willing to help. After everything it's the least I can--"

"And I can't trust you. So, no."

"Fair enough," Zaizen murmurs and after a moment he stands, smiles at Aya, and says, "Put Kusanagi's drinks on my tab, I'll square those up next time I'm here."

"I _told_ you--"

"It's just drinks. You're not selling your soul to me and I'm not expecting anything in return. I don't care if you sit here for the rest of the night getting plastered or quit after that one. But in this case I _do_ have some idea of what you're going through. Or have you forgotten the virus that was used on Aoi."

"That is _nothing_ like--" Shoichi jerks to his feet, one hand darting out to grab Zaizen's lapels and he's close, so close to driving Zaizen's teeth down his throat when a sharp clap followed by an icy command from Aya freezes him in his tracks.

"Boys, take it outside. I'm not about to stop you, but I will not have you making a mess of my establishment."

"Fine," Shoichi bites out as he releases Zaizen. His eyes still fixed on the other man, only darting away long enough to pay for his drink (because he'll be damned if he'll take Zaizen up on his offer) and both of them are silent as they stroll outside.

And when Zaizen turns to face him, Shoichi swings. So exhilarated by the fact that he's finally, _finally_ , going to take a round out of this prick that he doesn't notice Zaizen punching back until the man's fist connects squarely with his stomach.

After that everything is a blur. All he knows is that his knuckles ache and his head aches (Zaizen is a _way_ better fighter than he anticipated and somehow managed to crack an elbow against his temple) and he can taste the blood dripping from his nose. But Zaizen's left eye is swelling shut and that fancy suit of his is torn and Shoichi thinks he might have even managed to chip one of the asshole's front teeth which he figures is enough to call it even.

"How you gonna play off that shiner at work?" He's breathless as they sit side by side on the filthy pavement and Zaizen stares at him in disbelief for a moment before shaking his head.

"Tell the truth. That I got into a bar fight with an idiot who took offence to me for some inexplicable reason."

Despite himself, despite everything, a small chuckle slips past Shoichi's lips and he tips his head back. Letting it rest against the wall behind him as he stares up at the narrow strip of sky visible between the closely packed buildings. "I wouldn't call it inexplicable."

"I would call you an idiot though."

Shoichi hums in response to that. His head is absolutely killing him and he can barely breathe past the blood clogging his nose (god, he hopes it's not broken) but for the first time in hours he almost feels at ease. Maybe he's just tired now that the adrenaline spike is wearing off. His eyes sliding shut and for a moment he thinks that he could fall asleep like this.

A light touch against his jaw and when his eyes open Zaizen's face is right _there_. Inches away, close enough that he can see the cut he made in the other man's lower lip one of the times he hit him, and he's barely aware of Zaizen saying, "You probably shouldn't doze off. What if you're conc--" before Shoichi interrupts him by closing the distance and kissing him.

He knows it's stupid half a second after their lips make contact. Absolutely the dumbest possible thing he could have done. He can barely tolerate Zaizen at the best of times. Whatever vague sort of ease that has developed between them is secondary to the simple fact that Shoichi resents every single thing about Zaizen Akira. He resents him, he can't trust him....

But he kisses like a dream and Shoichi's breath is coming in sharp little gasps when they break apart. Zaizen looking just as shocked and rumpled as he feels and the strangest sort of sideways smile twists Zaizen's lips as he says, "Okay. You're definitely concussed," in what Shoichi assumes is an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Yea. That's as good an explanation as any."

"Do-- you need help getting home?"

"No. No, my truck's only a few blocks away."

"You probably shouldn't be driving either."

A sharp bark of laughter tears its way out of Shoichi's throat. "I live in the damn thing. I'll be fine." Slowly he stands, a little bit unsteady on his feet and leaning heavily against the wall behind him. "I'll--"

He stops short of saying "see you later." That's the last thing he wants, even if it is likely. Awkwardly mumbling, "g'night," and staggering down the street as he tries to ignore the throbbing ache in his skull.

That, and the strange hum of awareness that has him remembering the way Zaizen's lips felt against his.

**Author's Note:**

> I've actually had this one finished since before I finished the last part because I'm still incapable of writing anything in order.


End file.
